In October 2024, a 5-year joint research programme was signed between the Pirbright Institute in the United Kingdom and Chinese academic institutions, with the aim of improving connectivity between UK and Chinese academic institutions, with an emphasis on capacity building and knowledge transfer to address a variety of avian diseases.
The agreement builds on the research work of the Centre of Excellence for Research on Avian Diseases (CERAD) in China, already established by the Pirbright Institute in 2015. CERAD brings together the Shandong Binzhou Academy of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine and other Chinese academic institutions with the aim of focusing on poultry disease research.
To date, this collaboration has been based on extensive research into different aspects of avian diseases, leading to the development of vaccines and diagnostic tests, international meetings, and training in poultry disease research for students and postdoctoral scientists.
According to Prof. Bryan Charleston, Director of the Pirbright Institute, this agreement reinforces CERAD’s commitment to innovative approaches in avian health, using emerging technologies such as genomics, AI and single-cell biology to enhance animal health capabilities. And according to Prof. Bing Zhang, Director of the Shandong Academy of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, “this is of great importance for comprehensively advancing the research and control of poultry diseases in China and the United Kingdom, and will lay a solid foundation for us to promote international design and global development in their prevention and control.”